


In Our Element

by echo_of_words



Category: Sanders Sides (Web Series)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Fantasy, Baker Morality | Patton Sanders, Blood, Child Murder, Death, Decapitation, Dragons, Elemental Magic, Elementbending, Fantasy, Food, Gen, Healer Logic | Logan Sanders, Minor Character Death, Prince Creativity | Roman "Princey" Sanders, Tags may be updated later, Villain Deceit Sanders, Villain Remus Sanders, Violence
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-11-17
Updated: 2020-03-03
Packaged: 2021-02-08 02:27:37
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 4
Words: 10,089
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21468556
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/echo_of_words/pseuds/echo_of_words
Summary: In the kingdom of Endiria, people are sometimes born with the rare ability to control an element. These people are generally referred to as "elementals". They are so rare that it's a considered a miracle for two of them to be alive at the same time.And yet, although they don't know it, there are five of them currently alive in Endiria.Patton Rose, Logan Crofter, Prince Roman and Virgil Marsh don't know it yet, but they're about to encounter the biggest test of their lives. Will they be able to defeat the villain who has the power to control darkness itself?
Relationships: Anxiety | Virgil & Creativity | Roman & Logic | Logan & Morality | Patton, Platonic LAMP, Platonic LAMP/CALM, eventual platonic lamp
Comments: 10
Kudos: 67





	1. Beginnings

**Author's Note:**

> hey everyone! this fic is my child i've been working on it for months and i'm really excited to finally get to share it - i hope y'all like it as much as i liked writing it!! i probably won't have a proper posting schedule, but i've got a good portion of the chapters written and i'm gonna try to update at least once or twice a week!  
thanks to my amazing beta remy!! his tumblr is [@everyonehailtothepumpkins0ng](tumblr.com/blog/everyonehailtothepumpkins0ng) please go yeet some love

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A regular day for some not-so-regular people.

Patton concentrates on the loaves of bread, forcing the air around them to yield to his will. They float out of the oven and land neatly on the wooden board. With a flick of his hand, he lowers the temperature of the loaves so they're ready to be sold. He doesn't want to levitate the next unbaked batch into the oven for fear of causing them to sag and come out uneven, so instead he lines them up on the flat end of his peel and transfers them into the oven. He closes the oven door and turns his attention back to the freshly-baked bread, focusing on making the board float. He opens the door, the airborne board following him into the main area of the bakery. Grabbing his keys, Patton makes the board set itself on the counter behind him and goes to unlock the front door of the bakery. He turns the key in the lock and smiles at the customers already queueing outside.

"Good morning! Welcome to Rose Bakery, how may I help you?"

* * *

It's only a few hours after sunrise, but already, the marketplace is alive and bustling with people. Their chatter mingles with the shouts of vendors trying to attract customers to their stalls. The smell of fresh bread and cooking meat wafts across the heads of the crowd, making Virgil's mouth water. He lets his gaze wander and decides to walk over to a stand selling apples and pears, picking up individual fruits and pretending to inspect them for bumps, waiting for an opportunity to strike.

As the vendor turns around to rummage in a crate behind him, he sees his chance. Quick as a flash, Virgil slips two of the apples into his pockets and returns to idly turning over the fruits when the vendor turns back around. Pretending to lose interest in the apples and giving a fake snort of disgust, he walks away, his hand fiddling with a loose thread in the pocket of his cloak that isn't occupied by fruit. The cloak was one of the rare things he had to steal money for; saving up for ages by picking up loose coins from the marketplace and occasionally pickpocketing the townspeople of Viseria was worth it so he could buy the expanse of soft and bulky-looking material whose pockets enable him to hide the things he steals much more easily than before, and let him steal more than one thing at a time because he has more than one large pocket.

Now, he turns instead towards a baker's stand, drawn by the delicious smell of freshly-baked bread. He feigns a smile at the woman standing behind the makeshift counter. "Nice day, isn't it?"

She glances up towards the sky, whose brilliant blue is only hidden by a few small, feather-like clouds dotted about like sheep in a field. "Yes, I suppose it is. Can I help you?"

"Oh, no thanks, I'm not sure what I want to buy yet," he lies.

She smiles. "Well, let me know when you've decided!" She turns to help another customer.

Virgil slowly reaches his hand out towards the pile of breadrolls sitting on the counter and carefully transfers one to his pocket, trying to be as subtle as possible. He isn't quite sure whether the woman saw him or not, though, because when he glances back at her, she's frowning slightly. However, she says nothing, so he doesn't linger. Instead, he's about to go up to the next stand and try his look there, when—

"Catch that thief!" a shout arises from one of the stands across the marketplace. For a second, Virgil panics, thinking the apple seller from before realised what he's done, but then he glimpses a young boy running across the marketplace, clutching a pear and laughing as he's pursued by the very same fruit vendor.

Utilising everyone's momentary distraction, Virgil quickly grabs a block of cheese and a smoked ham from the nearest stalls and bolts. He sprints down an alleyway, turns a corner and down the next, slowing down only when he's just off the next main street, where running would only make him seem more suspicious. Halting momentarily to catch his breath, he opens his satchel and stows the ham and cheese away, along with the breadrolls and one of the apples. The other one he keeps in his hand, taking a large bite and savouring the crisp sweetness.

He steps out onto the street, eating his apple as he walks along. By the time he's finished the apple and tossed the core aside, he's reached the edge of the forest. The Dragonwood, as people have taken to calling it. Virgil supposes the name is well-earned, seeing as the woods are indeed inhabited by numerous forest dragons. However, he's learned to stay clear of them, and most of the dragons know to leave him alone.

He makes his way through the forest, looking around every few seconds to make sure he isn't being followed. He knows this is probably unnecessary, but the nagging voice in the back of his mind keeps insisting there's someone behind him, so he checks. Just in case.

Eventually, Virgil reaches the camp he's made in a small clearing. The campfire's still burning, but it's gone significantly down since he left. Throwing another few pieces of wood on it from the small pile he always tries to keep stocked on the edge of the clearing, he walks over to the assortment of grubby pieces of cloth and stained pillows that he's hidden under a bush for the daytime.

"Hey, Nagi! Are you in my bed again?"

They respond with a chiitter.

"Nagi, you know I don't know what that means."

More chittering. It almost sounds like they're laughing at him.

"Come on, don't you wanna see what I've brought?" He opens his satchel, letting the smell of the stolen food drift under the bush.

Excited chittering, followed by a dragon emerging from the leaves. They're about three feet tall, and they extend their wings in relaxed pleasure as Virgil scratches their purple scales, light filtering through the violet wing membranes and casting a tinted shadow on the forest floor. They fold their wings and sniff excitedly at Virgil's satchel.

"All right, calm down," he says, laughing. "Look, I got some cheese! Someone else got seen stealing, so I could grab this while everyone was distracted." He takes out his dagger and cuts the cheese in half while Nagi bounces up and down beside him, their orange eyes shining.

"Here you go." He holds one of the halves out to Nagi, who takes it in their jaws and devours it in one chomp, sniffing hopefully at the other half still in Virgil's hand.

"Nope, this one's for me, bud," he says to the dragon, taking a bite and marvelling at the savoury nutty taste. He doesn't get to eat cheese often – the man who sells dairy goods on the marketplace is very observant -, so any time he manages to grab a bit of cheese, it's a welcome treat.

He takes another bite, unpacking one of the rolls and his water cup. In a blink of an eye, the cup is full. Pity the water isn't nice and cool, really, but he's too lazy to concentrate on summoning cold water, so air temperature will have to do. He takes a sip and sigs when Nagi paws at him, sitting down on their haunches and looking at him with round, begging eyes.

"I still don't understand why you need to drink," he tells the dragon. "Can't you just, I dunno, breathe water in your mouth?"

They chitter and spit cold water in his face. Virgil laughs and makes it spray off him into Nagi's ear. They chitter at him, insulted.

"Alright, here you go then." He creates a small waterfall in mid-air, under which they place their head and drink greedily.

Virgil takes another bite of cheese and rips a chunk off the roll, stuffing it into his mouth as well, reflecting that although he hasn't got much, it's definitely enough.

* * *

Logan takes a deep breath. He's still very apprehensive of this, but Queen Beatrice suggested that he introduce himself to Prince Roman, and he can hardly refuse what he's pretty sure was an order, so he has no choice but to knock on the door. "Your Highness?"

"Come in!" a voice calls from inside. Logan opens the door to see a Prince Roman, clad in a heavily embroidered bathrobe, standing in what seems to be a lounge. The room has red wallpaper covered with intricate gold patterns, and has several plush armchairs and sofas. Logan briefly wonders why the prince needs this many seats if he's the only one living in these quarters, but he's distracted by the fact that Prince Roman, who's just turned to look at him, is holding a flickering flame in his palm, holding it up to his damp-looking hair.

After a quick moment of silence and Prince Roman looking questioningly at him, Logan's brain catches up with what's happening.

"Salutations. I am Logan Crofter, the newly employed palace healer," he states. "I have been told to introduce myself to you." Probably not the most elegant way to put it, but it's too late now.

"Oh! Yeah, Mother mentioned the new healer was arriving today. Nice to meet ya!" He extends one hand towards Logan, then seems to remember that that hand is currently on fire. He quickly retracts it and holds out the other one, wearing what looks like a genuine smile.

Logan takes the hand and they shake. Roman's flaming hand, meanwhile, has returned to its place next to his head.

"Is that not a little hazardous?" Logan asks as he watches Prince Roman continue to dry his hair with the open fire. "Your Highness?" he adds hastily.

"What? Oh, this? No, it's not. Me not being harmed by fire also extends to me not being able to catch on fire unless I want to," the prince explains. "It's pretty handy, actually. Saves me having to wait around for my hair to dry."

A pause. Logan internally cringes at how awkward the atmosphere between them is as he frantically tries to think of something to say that doesn't sound inherently rude.

"So, how long have you been a healer?" Prince Roman asks, finally breaking the silence.

"I have been studying healing for approximately fifteen years."

"So...since you were twelve years old, right? Mother said you were the same age as me." 

"That is correct."

"Wow, that's a lot! Did anything happen for you to start studying, or did you just feel like starting it?"

"I—" Logan hesitates. He doesn't particularly feel like sharing the story with someone who is essentially a complete stranger. "I simply thought it would be a good career choice."

"Well, that worked out well for you, didn't it? I mean, not everyone gets a place as an employee in the castle. I just hope you won't have to work that much." Prince Roman gives a short little laugh, then falls into silence again.

Logan shuffles backwards a little. "Yes. Well. It is good to have somebody on hand for emergencies."

More silence.

"I have...business to attend to," Logan mutters, still hyper-aware of how awkward the whole situation is. "I will see you around." He turns to leave.

"Bye!" Roman calls after him as he closes the door and hurries away, all the way back to his own room.

He exhales and sits down heavily on the bed, trying to think of something that isn't the horrendous awkwardness of his interaction with the prince.

But he finds his mind lingering on one particular detail of the conversation that he wasn't previously focusing on – the fire in Prince Roman's palm, and how at ease he seems to be with using his powers as an elemental in everyday situations.

Logan sighs and looks down at his own hand, balling it into a loose fist and concentrating. When he opens it again, a small pebble is sitting in his palm, perfectly smooth and round.

He sets it on his bedside table and lets himself fall back onto the bed, jostling his glasses. He removes them and lays them on the quilt next to his head, rubbing his eyes and sighing.

_ This is going to be an interesting job. _


	2. Attack

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Stuff happens at the castle. Virgil makes a discovery.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hey y'all! sorry for taking this long to upload, i promise i'll try to be faster next time--

Virgil turns another corner and catches the faint smell of food. He sniffs the air again. Fresh bread. He must've walked close to one of the bakeries without realising it.

He walks a little further along the alleyway and looks down one that branches off this one, catching sight of what he recognises as the marketplace street by the shop he can see from here.  _ Must be Rose Bakery, then. _ The small, but busy bakery is located on a street near the marketplace, and although he doesn't visit it a lot, he often hears praise for its baked goods on the marketplace.

He navigates the network of alleyways until he reaches the place he wants to be – the narrow street that the back door of Rose Bakery leads to. His heart leaps when he sees the door's been left open, and he tiptoes up to it, crouching down to peek around it and check if the coast is clear.

From here, he can see a stone oven, a counter, and – most importantly – a tray of breadrolls that, given their proximity to the oven, must be freshly-baked.

Knowing that this opportunity isn't likely to stick around, Virgil quickly ducks inside, opens his satchel, and grabs a few rolls.

But just then, the door that he assumes leads to the main area of the bakery opens with a creak. Virgil curses under his breath and, abandoning all caution, tips the entire tray of rolls into the bag before bolting.

"Hey!" the person who's just entered calls after him as he dashes outside, banging his shoulder on the doorframe in the process. "Kiddo, wait!"

But he doesn't turn back, sprinting a couple of hundred metres and turning several corners until he finally staggers to a halt, chest heaving, and leans up against the wall of the house he's standing next to.

_ Phew.  _ That was a lot closer than he would've liked.

* * *

Logan's always been a light sleeper, so when he wakes up to the sounds of shouts from the courtyard, his room, dark save for the chink of moonlight falling through the window, he doesn't think anything's amiss, and simply rolls over and closes his eyes again, thinking that some knights must be quarrelling over something. However, when he hears the unmistakable sound of tearing flesh, followed by a bloodcurdling shriek that can only be the result of terrible agony, Logan sits up straight, throwing his blanket aside and hurrying over to his window as he grabs his glasses from his bedside table.

Logan's bedroom is situated on the ground floor of one of the towers, close to the part of the castle that houses the royal family, to ensure that he's never far away, should one of them require assistance. However, the placing of his room grants him an excellent view of the courtyard. He sees the form of a person, huddled on the ground, and realises, shocked, that they're lying in a dark pool of something that can only be their own blood, staining their white guard's cloak scarlet. Next to them stands a dark shape that he at first assumes to be a person, but as he watches, it seems to melt onto the ground. Astonished, Logan watches as it flits across the sandy courtyard, wriggles underneath a wall and vanishes from sight.

He hears the creak of the castle gates being opened. Sensing that something must be wrong, he ducks down, so he won't be seen from the courtyard as easily. A pit of dread and, though he won't admit it to himself, fear, is growing in his stomach, and it only increases as he watches people stream into the courtyard. He can't see their faces, but he instinctively knows they shouldn't be there.

_ Where are the guards? _ he wonders desperately.  _ Surely they should have stopped this madness by now? _ But his question is answered as he spots people wearing white cloaks flanking the mass of people still pouring out onto the castle grounds.

He feels a little sick. _ The guards betrayed us? Why? Money, probably. But who would have that much gold, to be able to pay them more than the royal family? Nobody in the kingdom is that rich. Unless... No.  _ He can't think about that right now. The important thing is, there are strangers invading the castle, and, judging by the body of the guard outside, they do  _ not _ come in peace.

_ The royals _ , he remembers suddenly.  _ What about the royals? Is anyone aware of this attack? Unless... If the guards can be swayed, why not the servants? _ Whatever the answer to that question is, he has to move, and fast. But where should he go first?

_ Prince Roman. _ His chambers are the closest to Logan's and if there are people invading the castle, they'll probably be looking to take the prince out quickly, so his power as a fire elemental can't come into play to help defend the castle.

Logan darts away from the window and across the room just as he hears someone outside yell "CHARGE!" A great roar arises from the mass of people in the courtyard, and a loud thud tells him the castle doors have been thrown open. The guards inside the entrance hall must be corrupt as well, then.

He dresses quickly, throwing a simple cotton shirt and trousers on over his nightclothes and putting on a simple cloak as well. As he's lacing his shoes, he hears shouting in the halls. _ They must have reached the main hallway. _ He opens his emergency cupboard and starts shoving everything into his satchel – bandages, potions, anything he might need once he's made his escape. He grabs his pouch of gold too, letting it fall into the bag. As an afterthought, he also bundles up an extra cloak and stuffs it inside before snapping the clasp shut.  _ Right, time to go. _

He grabs the flickering lantern from his bedside table, takes a deep breath and then rushes out into the corridor, ducking around the people who are storming down it. He doesn't stop to see where they're going and simply does his best to ignore the stench coming off most of them, a foul smell of horse manure and and decay.

Logan ducks into the wooden door that he knows leads into the servants' passageways, silently thanking the builders of the castle for giving him a way to maneuver the castle without having to worry about being seen by the intruders as he hurries along the unlit corridor, led only by the glow of the lantern. He reaches a door, throws it open and climbs the narrow staircase behind it. He reaches the top and follows the next corridor until he reaches the door he's looking for – the one leading to Prince Roman's quarters. He just hopes the intruders haven't got there before him.

He listens for any noise of a scuffle on the other side of the door, but he can't hear anything that sounds like it, so he opens the door to reveal a small antechamber to the prince's leisure room. Logan hurries across the room and knocks on the bedroom door. "Your Highness? Are you awake?"

* * *

Roman is having a rather nice dream. It's an exciting one – he's fighting a dragon-witch that has kidnapped a handsome prince.

"Release him, you fiend!" he yells defiantly at her as she swoops at him. "Release him, I say!" But she just snarls and swipes at him with her talons, only missing because he's quick enough to jump aside, before ascending back into the sky.

"Come back here and fight me!" he shouts after her. She turns back towards him and opens her jaws. He expects her to breathe fire and jumps out of the way, but instead of flames, a voice issues from her maw.

"Your Highness?  _ Your Highness? _ Wake up!"

He sits bolt upright, disoriented. He looks around and jumps when he sees the castle healer standing at his bedside. He hastily yanks up the blanket, to hide his bare chest. "Wh– what is the meaning of this?"

"The castle is under attack," Logan responds curtly. "I have come to bring you to safety."

"The castle— what?!" Roman jumps to his feet, shirtless-ness forgotten. "We need to defend— where's my sword?" He looks around the room and spots it lying on the ground. He darts over, grabs it by the hilt and looks at Logan expectantly. "Come on, let's go! We have to fight!"

"We are doing no such thing. And, for the record, do not leave sharp objects lying on the floor, you might step on them by accident."

"But come on, we have to!" Roman is close to just rushing out of the door by himself.

"No. Even you with your fire powers cannot fight an entire horde of your own trained guards alone."

"My own— Wait, what?!" Roman's eyes widen in shock. "The knights betrayed us? But—"

"I do not know who is organising this, and I cannot answer your questions, so please just get dressed so we can leave before they reach this place. I am relatively certain they will attempt to eliminate you early on, so you can't aid the few still loyal knights in defending the castle."

Roman remains rooted to the spot, staring. "But then I have to help them! I don't want them to kill my friends!"

"Maybe your friends are on their side," Logan says darkly. "But either way, it doesn't matter. We cannot put your well-being at risk. They were heading towards your parents' room as well. If they are killed, you will be the direct heir to the throne, and the last remaining royal in Viseria. You—"

"ROYALNESS BE DAMNED!" Roman yells at him, furious. "I WANT TO HELP MY FRIENDS!"

"I—" Logan breaks off as something thuds in the other room. "They're breaking down the door. Come on, Your Highness, please just get dressed so we can leave," he hisses.

Roman sighs, admitting to himself that Logan isn't going to give up, and, as unhappy he is about it, Logan's probably right about the fact that Roman can't really do much to help. So instead of arguing further, he hands the sword to Logan, hurries over to his closet and grabs the first things he can see. He throws them on quickly, trying not to focus on the fact that Logan just saw him in his underwear, and turns around. "Right, where do we go?"

"Follow me." Logan makes to grab the lantern he's deposited on Roman's bedside table, but—

"Hey, there's no need for that." A flame flickers to life in Roman's palm and he grins at Logan as the familiar warmth tickles his fingers. "I've got all the light we need."

"Good. Let's go, then." Logan hands him the sword and hurries out of the room, Roman close behind him. They duck into a door in the leisure room, painted to almost perfectly blend in with the stone walls around it.

"Wait, where are we going?" Roman asks curiously as they hurry along a narrow corridor he's never seen before. "What is this place?"

"Have you seriously never been in the servants' corridors?" Logan looks at him over his shoulder, incredulous.

Roman shrugs. "Maybe? When I was a kid? Once? When our caretaker told us not to go in there?"

Logan sighs. "Well, you're here now. It's the safest way to navigate the castle without being seen." He turns a corner and leads Roman down another corridor. Their shadows dance against the brick walls as the flame in his hand flickers, almost threatening to go out, but he concentrates hard and it blazes bright again.

They turn a corner, and another one. Left, right, right, left... At first, Roman tries to keep track, but he quickly gives up and just follows Logan. Neither of them speak. At one point, Roman hears screaming from the other side of a door they're passing and is tempted to run inside and help, but Logan gives him a sharp look and he just sighs and continues onward. As they go on, Roman notices the stone bricks getting more and more cracked, and more than once, they both have to duck to avoid cobwebs.

Finally, they stop in front of an old, rotting wooden door. "Here," Logan says quietly. "This is an exit out of the castle grounds. These passages are barely used anymore, since there has never been a need to escape the castle in many centuries. We're lucky they're still here. Come."

He puts a hand on the doorhandle and pushes the door open to reveal a narrow spiral staircase. They hurry up it and reach another door. It creaks loudly as Logan opens it and they both freeze, but the noise doesn't seem to have alerted anyone, so they continue through the door and out into the cool night air.

Roman looks around. They seem to have emerged from inside one of the castle walls. There's a few bushes and trees dotted about, and they're standing on a sandy path that leads along the wall in both directions.

"Come on," Logan whispers, motioning for Roman to follow him. "This way." Roman sighs, touches a hand to the wall one last time, wondering when he'll return, and follows him.

* * *

Virgil's making his way through the forest, taking care not to tread on any twigs to prevent drawing attention to himself; he really isn't in the mood to encounter a forest dragon right now. He just wants to get to the town so he can get some food – there's usually some lying on the ground in the marketplace, and maybe some of the vendors haven't closed up their stands yet.

He spots an orange glow somewhere ahead of him and frowns. _ A fire? Did a dragon do that, or are there people around? But why would anyone make a campfire in the Dragonwood? _ Normally, people know to stay out of the forest.

He decides to go investigate and heads towards it. As he draws closer, he hears voices.  _ Must be a campfire, then. _ Virgil ducks down slightly as he approaches the clearing. He knows they probably won't notice him anyway, but being extra careful is still better than having to explain why he was eavesdropping on their conversation. He crouches down behind one of the blackberry bushes surrounding the clearing and listens.

"...back to the castle," someone was saying. "We will have to wait here and think of a plan to liberate it."

Virgil raises an eyebrow.  _ Who uses _ liberate  _ in normal conversation? _

"Yeah, but what can we do? I mean, obviously we have to retake it, but there's only two of us, and probably hundreds of them..." A pause. "Do you think all of the castle staff are on these attackers' side?"

"Unlikely, but since they are unable to do anything against these attackers by themselves, they will probably not be of any help to us."

The other one sighs. "You're right. But there's got to be something we can do! What...what about the townsfolk? They must be willing to revolt against all this!"

Virgil furrows his brow.  _ What the hell happened? _

"Yes, but... Your Highness, you must realise that we can't simply walk into Viseria and start asking people whether they'd like to help attack the castle to reclaim the throne. It is only logical that the attackers would have planted spies in the town, to prevent such an uprising from happening."

Your Highness?  _ Is that a mocking title, or is there an actual member of the royal family sitting in that clearing? _

Virgil tries to peek through the branches of the bush. He probably won't see anything worth noting, since it's hardly bright enough for him to recognise anyone, but...

He can see two figures, sitting on the ground next to a campfire. That's what he expected, really, except...

He has to slap a hand to his mouth to stifle a gasp. One of the figures, the one closer to him, and the one who seems to be marginally shorter than the other, has a small flame crackling in their palm, holding it close to them, as if to warm themself with it.

So... They _ are _ a royal family member, then. Prince Roman.

As if to confirm Virgil's suspicion, the person with the flame in their hand answers. "Yeah, I suppose you're right. Also, don't call me  _ Your Highness. _ If we're gonna be in these woods for a while, we might as well be friendly with each other. Just call me Roman."

"...Very well," the other person says, in a somewhat reluctant tone.

A pause. "Well, should we sleep for now, and see what happens in the morning?"

"Yes. We should take turns sleeping, so one of us can always be on watch. I will take first watch, and wake you in two hours' time." The one farther away from Virgil, Logan, pulls out a pocketwatch and adjusts his glasses.

Virgil decides he's heard enough and retreats back into the woods away from the clearing, mulling over what he's just heard.  _ So, the castle's been attacked? And Prince Roman and this other person – Logan – managed to escape, and are trying to find a way to retake the castle. Interesting. Although that probably means I shouldn't go to town tonight, all things considered. The townsfolk are bound to have noticed what's going on, and they'll all be on high alert. _

He sighs and starts heading back towards his and Nagi's camp.  _ Guess I'll have to make do with that mushy apple for dinner, then. Maybe I'll find some blackberries. We'll see. _


	3. Ashes

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Virgil receives an unexpected gift, and Patton wakes up to an unpleasant surprise.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> oop i'm sorry for taking so long to post this-- chapter 4 should be up soon though!  
also at this point i should probably point to the tags - please take them seriously! there's gonna be some graphic stuff later on.

"So yeah, it was just standing there, and I didn't really know what to make of it," Virgil tells Nagi as they sniff curiously at the basket of baked goods he's brought with him. "But the door was closed, and it smelled good, so I decided to go have a look, and this note was lying on top of the bread." He pulls a scrap of paper out of his bag and shows it to the dragon. They cock their head.

"_For the kiddo that stole some of my bread yesterday_," Virgil reads off the note. The handwriting is relatively neat, with rounded letters and a little circle instead of a simple dot on the I. Underneath the words is a little drawing of what he assumes is supposed to be a cat.

He looks up. Nagi still looks confused, and if he's honest with himself, he can't blame them – he isn't entirely sure what's happening either.

"And, well, that's obviously me, so I decided to take it. But I didn't eat anything yet – I wasn't sure whether that baker was trying to poison me," Virgil continues. "So I brought it back here for you to check. But if you're sure it's safe to eat, then..." He shrugs, drops the note and instead rips a chunk off one of the loaves of bread. As he does so, he notices something else in the bottom of the basket that makes his heart leap.

"Cookies," he breathes. The bread forgotten, he drops the chunk he's holding back into the basket and instead fumbles to grab one of the cookies. He brings it closer to his face to inspect it. hardly daring to believe it.

The last time he had cookies must've been... what, thirteen years ago? Then he finally started looking too old to receive treats from people in the marketplace, and had to resign himself to stealing healthier food if he wanted to survive.

"They gave me cookies, Nagi," Virgil says, more to himself than to the dragon. "Cookies. Am I dreaming?"

Nagi chitters and shakes their head.

He looks back at the cookie. "Guess I'll..." He takes a bite, and positively _ melts. _The cookie itself is crumbly and buttery, and he can taste the honey that's been used to sweeten it. The currants mixed into it taste fruity, and their cheweyness adds an extra layer of texture to the cookie that makes the whole thing even better. The first cookie is gone way too quickly, and Virgil finds himself reaching into the basket for another one.

Nagi makes a sort of whining noise and when Virgil looks up at them, they're, for lack of a better word, pouting.

"You want one too or something?"

They nod eagerly.

Virgil pretends to seriously consider the question for a few seconds, causing them to whine again.

"Alright, alright, here you go." He fishes another one of the cookies out of the basket and holds it out for Nagi, who snaps at it greedily, devouring it in one go. Their eyes widen as they chew and they look at Virgil with a pleading look in their eyes.

He sighs. "Look, I'll see how many that baker gave us and we can split, but I don't know how many we have, so don't be disappointed if that was the only one."

They nod eagerly and bend over the basket, sniffing.

"I can't_ get _ at the basket if your head is in the way, you oversized lizard!"

* * *

Patton's drifting through the sky at a slow and lazy pace, happy and content. He touches a cloud as he goes by and giggles at the fluffiness and how soft it is. _ Just like the wool Mrs. Fletcher used to sell on the marketplace. _

Suddenly, one of the clouds takes the shape of a fluffy white dragon. It chitters playfully at him and flies ahead of him, cloudy wings flapping.

Patton speeds up to fly alongside the dragon, but it flaps its wings faster and soars out of his reach. They both fly faster and faster, dodging clouds as they race each other through the clouds.

Patton notices the sky getting darker as they fly along. The clouds have turned from white to dark grey, and he suddenly realises the dragon's vanished. A thunderclap echoes around him. The air smells faintly of woodsmoke.

"Hello?" he calls out, afraid.

Nothing answers. Instead, another clap of thunder crashes around him. He instinctively cowers into a ball, but he's still drifting along, now on course for a collision with a huge dark cloud. He tries to will himself to drift in another direction, but nothing happens as the cloud grows nearer and nearer, the smell of smoke growing stronger and stronger.

"Help!" he cries out. "Please! Anyone! I—"

_ CRASH. _

Patton jerks awake and sits bolt upright. He immediately registers two things – that noise wasn't a thunderclap, it came from downstairs. And the smell of woodsmoke wasn't a dream.

_ The bakery's burning_, he realises. Everything feels numb. _ Someone's broken into the bakery, and they've set a fire. _

Through the floorboards, he can see the orange glow of flames downstairs. Heat is already rising up into his room, and he knows he has to leave.

_ Why? _ he wonders desperately as he jumps out of bed to throw on yesterday's clothes, which are still lying crumpled on the floor, and grabs his satchel from under the bed to throw in the small pouch of gold he keeps under his pillow. _ Who's doing this? What have I done to them? _

Laughter echoes up the stairs as he takes one more look around the room. In a split second decision, he grabs the frame on his bedside table and pauses for a second to look at it. The frame holds a piece of parchment enchanted to show the image of two smiling parents and their two beaming children, frozen in time forever, which has now become a memorial to a time now long forgotten.

Patton shakes his head, slips the frame inside the bag and snaps the clasp shut. _ Can't afford to get lost in memories now. _ He slings the bag over his shoulder and descends the stairs, not caring whether the intruders hear him or not.

There's someone standing in front of the back exit, a man who Patton vaguely recognises as an occasional customer at Rose Bakery. Now, he's grinning at Patton with a malicious look in his eyes. "You're not getting out," he informs him. "You're gonna stay in here, and we're gonna kill ya! You deserve it! Everyone who's on that snake's side deserves it! You're gonna fucking die!"

"I don't— what are you—" Patton doesn't know what snake the man is talking about, but he also feels tears stinging his eyes. Now is not the time for crying, however. He lets out a shout and a sudden gust of wind knocks the man off his feet. Patton steps around him and books it, sprinting out of the back door as fast as he can.

He turns a few corners and continues running full pelt through side streets and back alleys as he lets the tears run freely now, not knowing whether they stem from grief, or sadness, or fear, or frustration, or maybe all of them at once.

Patton knows it probably isn't safe to be running blindly through the streets at night, but he couldn't care less. He makes his way through the alleyways, weaving his way through until he finally reaches the outskirts of the town. He stops running, but still doesn't allow himself to stop as he stumbles away from Viseria and into the Dragonwood. He knows he probably shouldn't do this, shouldn't be running into the danger of the forest, but currently, the only thing he wants to do is get away, away from the town, away from Rose Bakery, away from the people who've by now probably completely burned down the only home he's ever known.

He stumbles through the trees and eventually collapses to his knees on the forest floor, not having the strength to get up again. He curls up into a ball and lets himself sob until he finally passes out and darkness engulfs him.


	4. Alliance

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Roman and Logan meet someone new, in a way none of them expected.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Things are about to get bloody. Please read the tags and stay safe.

Virgil's on his way to the marketplace, moving through the alleyways as always, when he hears shouting and a scream that is abruptly cut short.

Concerned, but wary, he speeds up towards the place the noise seems to be coming from, taking care to quieten his footsteps as he draws closer. The noise seems to be coming from the town square, which doesn't exactly reassure him.

He halts on a side street that leads onto the town square and hovers in the shadows, eyes widening with horror as he takes in the scene before him.

A large wooden platform with steps leading up to it has been erected, taking up most of the centre of the square. The platform is surrounded by onlookers, some of them shouting abuse, others covering their faces, others simply looking on in horror. Around them, at the walls of the houses and now vacant shopfronts, stand armed and armored guards.

On the platform, five people in knights' armor are holding people by the scruffs of their necks. Each one of them is holding a shortsword. The people, who, judging by their simple clothing, are ordinary townsfolk and look similar enough to be a family, are all struggling, kicking and flailing at the air, but to no avail. From what Virgil can see, they all look terrified.

One of the knights, the one holding back a red-faced man, raises his sword. "Let this be a lesson to you, peasants. Don't disrespect the Dark Sides." Virgil realises what's going to happen a second before it does, but doesn't look away as the knight brings the blade around.

With a sickening _ thwack_, the steel cuts into the man's neck. Blood spurts out of the wound as the man's head is almost completely separated from his body, only attached by a thin strand of muscle and tendons. The crowd screams in horror and outrage, and parents shield their children’s eyes.

A man breaks off from the crowd and charges up the steps, looking furious, causing an uproar from the crowd, but as soon as he gets within a few feet of the knights, an arrow zips through the air and buries itself in the man's neck. He crumples to the ground and twitches for a second before going still, blood pooling from the wound.

People scream. Some of them even cower in fear. Others, like Virgil, look in the direction of the arrow's source, to see a hooded figure standing on a rooftop, holding a longbow. They make a two-fingered salute and duck down again to vanish from sight once more.

Virgil shivers and looks around. _ There could be more of them here, just waiting for someone to step out of line... _

On the platform, the knight holding the smallest child raises his sword. Virgil turns away and heads back into the alley, breaking out into a run before he can think about it too much. He hears a terrified shriek of pain behind him and more screaming from the crowd.

_ Those two people in the Dragonwood fled for a good reason _ , he thinks as he turns another corner and slows to a quick walk._ This must be the work of those people who broke into the castle. They must have ordered this. The Dark Sides must be an organisation of some sort who started this whole thing. _

_ But why? _

Virgil continues to walk, turning the matter over in his mind. _ Maybe they just weren't happy with how the current monarchy was handling things? But surely there would've been a way to change things without murdering the king... Well. Maybe they're just someone who thinks violence is the easiest way to go with this kinda stuff. _

* * *

Roman's walking through the forest, looking around and trying to spot a bush with the kind of berries Logan advised him to look for. They didn't manage to bring much food from the castle when they fled, so they've got to live off berries from the woods, since although they did bring a little gold, they don't want to risk going into Viseria. After all, if somebody recognises them, their escape would have been for nothing, and Roman doesn't even want to think about what would happen if they're captured.

He tugs at the hood of the cloak. Logan thought to bring an extra one from the castle, and they've both agreed that it's better for Roman to wear a hood so his face isn't immediately recognisable to anyone who might come across them in the woods. Granted, that isn't very likely, as they chose the Dragonwood specifically because people hardly ever venture inside (Roman tries not to focus on the fact that this is because it's infested with forest dragons), but still, it's better to be too cautious than to end up being discovered.

"Hey!" He hears a shout from behind him and whirls around, the hood nearly falling off. He hastily readjusts it and looks up to see someone running towards him. For a second, he debates whether or not to run away, but instead settles on putting his hand on the hilt of his sword, which is fastened at his hip, and looking at the stranger suspiciously as the man skids to a halt in front of him, panting.

"Hi," he says in between heaving gasps. "Sorry, I'm not used to running that much, but you're the first person I've seen since I came into the woods and—"

"Who are you?" Roman interrupts, hand not leaving his sword.

The stranger looks up at him and straightens his glasses. "I'm – Patton – Rose," he wheezes. "I—" He leans against the tree he's standing next to. "Do you mind if I catch my breath for a moment?"

"No," says Roman slowly. "No, I don't mind. But still, who are you?"

"I— I live in Viseria." The stranger, whose name is apparently Patton, takes several deep breaths. "I run Rose Bakery. Near the marketplace. I was— had to run away. People attacked. Last night. The bakery. They just..." Patton seems to be tearing up a little. "They set it on fire. It's probably all gone now. I don't understand _ why_, what did I _ do _ to them? I just— I just sold baked goods and minded my own business! What's so bad about that?"

"Well, do you think it had anything to do with the people who attacked the castle a couple nights ago?" Roman asks.

"I— I don't know. Maybe. Everyone's going mad in the town anyway. Those... those people, they're just picking random people and killing them, in public, for no reason! They—"

"Woah, woah, woah, hold up. There's public executions?" Roman feels a little sick. He knew these people were bad, but he didn't think they would stoop that low.

Patton looks at him, confused. "You didn't know?"

"No, I—" Roman stops. _ How do I put this without telling him who I am? _

"I fled the town on the night the castle was attacked," he says carefully. "And I haven't been back to Viseria since, so I haven't really heard what's going on in town."

Patton looks concerned. "Do you have food and stuff out here?"

"Well, not really," Roman admits. "I was just looking for berries, but I'm not great at finding edible ones. Logan's much better at that kinda stuff."

"Oh, you're not alone?"

_ Fuck. Shouldn't've said that. _ "Uh, yeah, I came here with an—" He can hardly say _ employee _. "—with a friend," he finishes.

"Oh, that's nice." Patton pauses. "I... I don't suppose you've heard the other bit of bad news?" he asks hesitantly.

"There's more bad news?" Roman feels a pit of fear brewing inside him. _ What else could possibly have happened? Isn't this already bad enough? _

"King Romulus, he..." Roman's stomach drops. "They killed him. During the attack. There are rumours that he tried to stab the person who was leading the attackers – Deceit, he's calling himself – but he turned around and slit his throat." Patton looks slightly nauseous. "They... they showed his body to the public. A few days ago. They went around Viseria with a wagon that had his body strapped to the front. I suppose they were trying to show everyone that they were powerful enough to kill the king, and how that meant the Dark Sides – that's what the organisation are calling themselves – were the new leaders now."

Roman feels slightly dizzy. His vision goes blurry with what he realises after a few seconds are tears. He sways and his knees buckle. He hits the ground with a thud, causing the hood to fall off, but he doesn't care. His father...dead? Just like that?

"Hey, you alright?" Patton crouches down beside him, worry etched in his voice.

Roman doesn't respond. Everything feels numb.

"Kiddo, you—" Patton stops. "Wait, aren't you—"

"Yes," Roman blurts through a sob as the tears begin to fall. "Yes, I'm Prince Roman, blah blah, and you can skip the whole _ greetings, Your Highness, oh I'm so sorry for talking to you, Your Highness, my condolences, Your Highness—_"

"No!" Patton says quickly, sounding upset. "No, that wasn't what I was going to do at all! I just—" He breaks off. "Is it okay if I hug you?"

Roman nods wordlessly, wiping away a tear. _ Wow, this is embarrassing. Crying in front of a stranger. What if he just turns out to be one of them, and he's here to kidnap me, and he's actually gonna stab me now while I'm distracted, and— _

Warm arms envelop Roman from behind, and he automatically relaxes into them, forgetting his worries for a moment. Logically, he shouldn't be feeling that _ someone else _ is warm, _ he's _ the warm one, he's literally a _ fire _ elemental, heat is in his _ blood— _

And yet, Patton's warmth feels comforting. He doesn't do anything else, he just holds Roman as his body shudders with sobs.

Eventually, the crying stops. He doesn't know why. The tears just won't come, and now he's left sniffling quietly.

"You alright now, kiddo?" Patton asks quietly, still not moving his arms.

"Y— yeah. I think so." Roman hiccups. "Sorry for breaking down like that, I just—"

"Hey, it's completely fine," Patton says soothingly. "It's completely understandable. I was the same after... after my parents died."

"Oh." Roman doesn't really know what to say. "I... I'm sorry you had to go through that." 

"It's okay. It happened a long time ago. Besides, you're the one who's grieving now, don't let yourself be distracted by my silly stories."

Roman frowns a little, but doesn't say anything. He hiccups again.

"Do you...wanna come along to our camp?" he blurts without thinking. "Do you..." _ Fuck. _ This is exactly the kind of stuff Logan wouldn't want him to do.

"Do I want to what?" Patton prompts, although he can't disguise the hopefulness in his voice.

Well, it's too late now, so he might as well go along with it. "Do you wanna help us fight those..." He can't even call them_ people_. They don't deserve that. "That organisation that took over the castle and killed..." He can't bring himself to say it, but Patton seems to understand.

"I... yeah, I'd like that," Patton says quietly. "It'd be nice not to just be running around the Dragonwood on my own. And I want to get rid of them too."

Roman realises he's still practically sitting in Patton's lap and hastily goes to extract himself from Patton's arms, trying to stop the blush rising to his cheeks. Patton relinquishes his hold on him, gets to his feet and holds out a hand to pull Roman to his feet.

"So where's this camp of yours?"

* * *

Virgil takes a deep breath to try and steady himself. _ Come on, you're going to do this, it'll be fine, you just need to talk to them and it'll be okay. Maybe if he tells himself that enough, he'll actually start believing it. You're going to ask them to join, and you're going to show them your element powers, and they're going to give you an answer, and depending on what they say, you're either going to go back to your camp or be murdered or something because they don't want people knowing where they are and— Nope. Not helping. _

He sighs and approaches the place where he knows Logan's and Prince Roman's camp is. It'll be fine, he tells himself firmly. _ Fine. Probably. _

He ducks down to listen behind his usual bush, just to make sure he's not interrupting anything. He peers through the branches and freezes as he notices a third figure sitting there. The person's voice sounds vaguely familiar, but Virgil can't quite place his finger on where he's heard it before. They're facing away from him, so he can't try to identify them by their face, either.

"...is great!" they're saying. "Thank you so much for letting me stay, Logan! It really means a lot."

Well, they seem to be in the mood for accepting new people into their group, so maybe they'll allow Virgil too? Before he has too much time to overthink it, he gets to his feet and steps around the blackberry bush into the clearing, treading on a twig as he does so. It snaps loudly and he winces as all three of them jump up to look at him, Prince Roman already igniting a flickering flame in his palm.

"I, uh. Hi," Virgil says awkwardly and immediately curses himself for it. Where are his smooth conversation skills from the marketplace when he needs them?

"What do you want?" Roman demands, his left hand still aflame, stepping closer to where a sword that Virgil assumes belongs to him is lying discarded on the ground. Logan is eyeing him apprehensively, and the third person is frowning slightly.

_ Wait. Isn't that— _

"Aren't you the kiddo who took that bread from my bakery the other day?"

_ Well, fuck. _"Uh, yeah, that was me." Virgil rubs the back of his neck awkwardly. "I kinda...needed food?"

"Aww, you could've just asked! I wouldn't have minded giving you something! I'm Patton, by the way."

"Yeah, well. Most people don't take too kindly to random people asking them for food. So I was kinda...working with experience there. Also, thanks for those cookies." He remembers the other part of the baker's statement. "Oh, and my name's—" He hesitates for a second, but then continues, telling himself that if he wants to work with them, he might as well give them his real name. "Virgil."

The baker – Patton – looks like he's about to say something else, but Prince Roman interrupts. "Can you please tell us what you are doing here?"

"I... I wanted to join you guys. I know what happened in Viseria, and I've seen how unjust Deceit's rulership is." He cringes internally. _ Unjust? Who uses _ unjust _ in a normal conversation? Well, Logan probably would, but still. _

_ ...Knowing that about someone when you've never actually talked to them before is really messed up, isn't it? _

Well. Too late now.

"And how do we know you aren't a spy sent by his people to kidnap Roman?" Logan asks, suspicion etched in his voice.

"I, uh..." Virgil's frantically trying to think of something – he didn't actually think he'd get this far – when he hears a snarl behind him.

He whirls around to see a forest dragon towering over him. Its brownish-green scales shimmer in the light of the campfire and smoke curls from its nostrils as it hisses again, orange eyes glinting maliciously.

Virgil hastily takes several steps back. He looks over his shoulder to see that behind him, Roman has ducked down to grab his sword, and Patton's fallen into a fighting stance (though what weapon he intends to fight with, Virgil doesn't know).

"Talk later. For now, let's focus on getting rid of this thing," he says grimly. He isn't sure where this confidence is coming from, but he's just going to roll with it and help these guys defeat this dragon.

Roman nods with a determined expression on his face. "Yeah, let's."

* * *

Logan takes a step back as Roman clenches the hand that was previously holding the small flame, a ball of fire now growing around his fist.

The dragon lets out a roar and crashes through the blackberry bushes into the clearing, sending a stream of flames out of its maw in their direction. Roman reacts faster than Logan would've thought, because the fire bends around them, leaving Virgil and Patton unscathed. As soon as the fire dissipates, they scatter as far apart as the relatively small clearing allows, and Roman throws the fireball in the direction of the dragon. It dodges, hissing furiously, and belches out another stream of flame, this time aiming for Patton. Roman's fireball hits a tree behind the dragon, setting it aflame. Patton, meanwhile, evidently also has good control of his powers, because he seems to have created a furious whirlwind around himself, blowing all the fire away from himself.

Virgil gapes at him for a moment, then seems to remember what's going on and – to Logan's utter astonishment – throws out a hand, causing a stream of water to emit from it and douse the still burning tree.

Roman whirls around, wide-eyed. "You're an elemental too?" But before Virgil can respond, the dragon roars again and lumbers towards Roman, evidently having realised that the flames aren't going to have much effect on them.

Roman steadies his sword and ducks to the side as the dragon swipes at him with a paw the size of Logan's entire torso. He runs in and slashes at its leg before quickly retreating. The dragon hisses as the steel drags across its scales, causing an unpleasant screeching sound and leaving a long white scrape, but it doesn't seem to have caused any harm, and Logan hears Roman curse as he retreats across the clearing, leading the dragon away from Logan and towards Patton and Virgil.

Logan knows he should probably do something, but he can't think of anything to do without revealing his elemental powers to the others, and anyway, he doesn't want to use them, especially not with dragons, that just brings back memories that he'd rather not think about right now—

The dragon snarls and swipes at Virgil, who yelps and jumps out of the way. He falls to the ground with an audible "_ oof _" as the breath is knocked out of him.

"Hey, look over here, you overgrown reptile!" Roman yells, presumably to distract the dragon from Virgil. It hisses and turns to face Roman just as he releases another fireball, which this time hits its target – the dragon's face. It howls and lumbers towards Roman instead, but Patton, who's rushed over to Virgil, jumps up and shouts something that Logan can't hear as the dragon lets out another roar.

Suddenly, the dragon stumbles. Roman uses his opportunity to attack the dragon with flames again, aiming for its eyes. It hisses and snaps at Roman, who falls back with a cry of pain. Logan can see blood on the sleeve of his shirt, staining the white fabric scarlet. His stomach feels like it drops several feet. From what he knows, Roman is their best fighter, and him being injured is far from optimal.

Virgil has managed to stagger to his feet. He focuses his gaze on the dragon and suddenly, a large amount of water appears several feet in the air above it, falling down onto it and drenching it. It hisses, making a sound like water being poured into an open flame.

Patton, meanwhile, has evidently begun to levitate several small rocks from the forest floor, because now, there's several of them hurtling towards the dragon and hit it square in the face. It jerks back and snarls, just as the rocks come flying back around to hit it again. This repeats several times, until the dragon ducks away and roars, sending a spout of flame in Roman's direction. He doesn't do anything to stop it, but grimaces – presumably in pain – as he flinches at the sudden burst of light. He begins forming another fireball.

Virgil must've seen the small fires now burning behind Roman, because they're abruptly extinguished as water falls on them.

However, his momentary distraction's given the dragon time to turn around, snarling in frustration, whipping him in the stomach with its tail. Virgil groans and falls to the ground, hugging himself as he cringes in what Logan can only assume is pain.

The rocks, which were still hurtling towards the dragon, abruptly drop to the ground as Patton rushes over to Virgil, saying something Logan can't hear at this distance. However, this gives the dragon time to swipe at Patton. The claws miss, but it does knock Patton to the ground, and he doesn't get up.

Logan feels a sense of panic rising up inside him. All three have now been injured, and at least one of them is unconscious. Virgil isn't moving either, though, so Logan assumes him to be out of action as well. That only leaves Roman, whose arm is still bleeding, and who still hasn't managed to get to his feet.

Logan takes a deep breath. It looks like him intervening is the only option left if he doesn't want the dragon to kill them.

He calls on his powers, concentrating with all his might. The dragon's just turned back to Roman, and it's moving towards him once again, snarling threateningly.

_ Thwump. _A huge boulder appears several inches above the ground, exactly where the dragon previously was, and falls to the soft forest floor, rolling only a few yards before coming to a halt. Black spots dance in Logan's vision and he staggers a little to the side. He knew it was going to take energy out of him, but he wasn't expecting it to be that bad.

Well, at least the dragon isn't a threat anymore.

Roman turns around, gaping at him, and looks like he's about to say something, when his eyes roll up and he slumps to the ground as well.

_ Well then. _ Logan lets out a deep breath he didn't realise he's been holding. _ It's up to me to patch them up. _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Things are heating up, folks. (Well technically Patton's house already did that last chapter but-- ok no i'm sorry)

**Author's Note:**

> thanks for reading!! comments and kudos are greatly appreciated! (also if you wanna check me out on tumblr, it's [@echo-of-words](echo-of-words.tumblr.com))


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